Category: College of Arts & Sciences

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SEAMEO INNOTECH Online Course

SEAMEO INNOTECH is offering the online course, TEACH ON: Keeping the Passion Alive to all teachers for FREE.

Successful course completers of TEACH ON will receive an international certificate of participation from SEAMEO INNOTECH as well as 15 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) credits for the renewal of their license.

The course aims to inspire, rekindle and sustain teacher’s passion for teaching.  This course was designed to be flexible to help ensure the teacher’s success as a learner of the course. It is equivalent to 40 training hours and is self-paced. Teachers have access to the course for two (2) full months from April 2 to June 5, 2020 at any time of the day or night. This provides them more than enough time to complete the 40 training hours equivalent of course work. This also allows them to manage the time and location where they access the course.

For details on how to enroll, please download the step-by-step guide on this link: https://bit.ly/teachon2020howtoenroll.

For answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), please check out https://bit.ly/teachonfaq.

For further questions or concerns, please follow our Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/teachoninnotechmooc.  

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CAS Dean translates knowledge into an act of care

Dr. Milagros Greif, CAS Dean, is concocting the 70% ethyl alcohol with mosquito repellent inside CNU’s Biology laboratory to supply personnel in time of the COVID-19 scare. / Photo by Kim Francis Rodriguez 

Times of crisis call generous people with big hearts to extend their helping hands to those who need it and gladly, one in Cebu Normal University (CNU) has thought of doing the same thing in its community.

In time of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, Dr. Milagros Greif, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) and a faculty at the Biology Department in CNU has decided to make a disinfectant alcohol enriched with mosquito repellent last Tuesday, March 17, 2020 which was distributed to the different personnel in the University.   

Ms. Mechelle Canoy, PIO Staff is distributing rations of the 70% ethyl alcohol with mosquito repellent made by Dr. Milagros Greif to the different personnel in the University.
Ms. Mechelle Canoy, PIO Staff is distributing rations of the 70% ethyl alcohol with mosquito repellent made by Dr. Milagros Greif to the different personnel in the University. / Photo by Erven Noval

Greif said that she noticed the urgent need for disinfectant alcohol when the product has been running out in stores because of the COVID-19 scare. It was then that she decided to concoct a disinfectant alcohol inside the biology laboratory to be given to the skeletal force of the University.   

“I applied what I have learned during my PhD when I was requested by my professor to make an alcohol with different concentrations for mosquito preservation in my experiments,” she said.   

Dr. Milagros Greif is harvesting lemon from her garden to be used in her 70% ethyl alcohol with mosquito repellent. (Contributed photo)

Greif said that she used raw materials such as ethanol and natural plant extracts found in her garden (lemon and clavo which are scientifically known as mosquito repellents) to make the alcohol concoction. 

She said that she has decided to add mosquito repellent to the alcohol in order not just to prevent the spread of COVID-19 but also to give protection to people against mosquitoes which are carriers of equally deadly viruses such as dengue.

Greif finished her Masters in Biology specializing in the study of insects. She finished her Doctorate studies as a scholar of the German Academic Exchange Services at the University of Heidelberg in Germany specializing in mosquitoes. She has been well-versed on the subject of mosquitoes after studying it for more than 15 years.

Greif was recently recognized as an outstanding researcher on urban pest control through biotechnology and was awarded nationally as one of the Filipino Faces of Biotechnology given by the Department of Agriculture-Biotechnology Program Office (DA-BPO) last November 26, 2019. (JDF)

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3 Normalites experience being state diplomats in AYIMUN 2020

Three college students from Cebu Normal University (CNU) took part in an international conference that enabled them to hone their diplomatic, public speaking, and debate skills together with young leaders across the globe discussing world issues and the possible ways to solve them.

These students are Margarito Leonard Roy Roldan, Shella Carpina, and William Jefferson Granzon. All of them are first year college students who represented the Philippines at the Asia Youth International Model United Nations (AYIMUN). They are also the first representatives from CNU to participate in AYIMUN.

AYIMUN is an annual conference organized by the International Global Network which started in 2017. AYIMUN is on its fourth year now with the theme Global Diplomacy Amongst the Sovereign Nations. The conference was held on February 15-18, 2020 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

AYIMUN aims to provide an avenue for young individuals who aspire to be future diplomats where participants are given simulation of how United Nations (UN) conduct their general meetings. Delegates coming from different countries across the globe convene to discuss international issues and policies, and try to solve them by drafting and passing resolutions scrutinized in a committee session.

Each delegate is assigned to a specific council and is then asked to make a proposition to a specific topic being given. A moderated caucus or formal debate and an unmoderated caucus or informal debate then take place. Three delegates in each council are then recognized by the Chair for Best Verbal Commendation, Best Delegate, and Best Position Paper.    

Roldan, a BA Public Administration student who represented Croatia under the council of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) with a discussion topic “Granting Citizenship to Stateless Persons”, was awarded the Best Verbal Commendation besting 80 delegates.

Carpina, a BA Communication student who major in Broadcast Journalism represented Ukraine under the council of World Health Organization (WHO) with a research discussion on “Addressing Mental Health Issue as Indispensable International Concern”. She was also awarded Best Verbal Commendation from among 184 delegates in WHO.

Granzon, also a BA Communication student who major in Broadcast Journalism represented Botswana under the delegation of United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) with the council topic on “International Action to Protect Children from Cyber Bullying”. They were composed of more than 140 delegates in UNICEF.

All three of them applied as independent delegates and sought the assistance of their relatives and friends for funding.

“Ang amo lang ma-represent namo ang school sa AYIMUN (We just wanted to represent CNU in AYUMIN),” Roldan said.

Carpina said that this is her third attempt in joining a Model United Nations (MUN) conference but the first successful one due to financial constraints in the previous two. She applied AYIMUN in June 2019 and was accepted on October 2019.

“The whole experience was unforgettable for me because it has been my childhood dream to represent the country and to travel as well,” Granzon said.

“It is also unforgettable for me because I was able to create bond and friendship with delegates from other countries also,” Granzon added. (JDF)

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Graduate students and educators learn new trends in food processing

Current food processing techniques were learned by Cebu Normal University (CNU) graduate school students and faculty members through a lecture conducted by a volunteer professor from South Korea.

A Lecture on Emerging Trends in Food Processing was held last February 15, 2020 at the Tandang Sora Nursing Hall. It was attended by graduate students who major in Science-related fields and faculty members from the Science Department.  

Dr. Kong Hwan Kim, a retired Professor from Ajou University, Suwon, Korea who is a PhD-holder in Food Engineering was invited as a resource speaker.

He discussed the emerging trends in food processing such as novel thermal and novel non-thermal technologies. He also discussed varied food processing techniques that extend shelf life of products without changing their taste and damaging their nutrient contents.

Samples of novel thermal technologies include microwaves, radiofrequency, and ohmic heating. Applications of novel non-thermal technologies on the other hand include high pressure, pulsed electric fields, ultrasound, induction heating ultraviolet, light pulses, ozone, cold plasma, irradiation, and dense phase carbon dioxide.  

Prof. Kim said that the emerging technology is environmentally friendly through the use of less energy to process food. He said that it definitely has no negative effect on society at all.

The event was organized by the External Affairs and International Linkages (EAIL) Office in partnership with the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS), College of Teacher Education (CTE), and the Graduate School Students Organization (GRASSO).

Prof. Kim is a volunteer Professor in CNU who has stayed for more than a month teaching Korean language and his expertise in food engineering.

He has been a Professor for 35 years before retiring five years ago.

Prof. Kim has been to different countries such as Nepal, Laos, Vietnam, Mongolia, Thailand, and Cambodia doing his volunteer service in teaching. (JDF)

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English Fellows Organization: Back on Track

Two years after its slumber, the English Fellows (EF) Organization comprising of English Language and Literature major students from College of Teacher Education (CTE) and College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) awakened through celebrating the English Studies and Other Languages (ESOL) Month last February 26-27, 2020.

The organization was founded almost four decades ago, joining all English majors of Cebu Normal University (CNU) as one. The bond played a stronger role through the test of times on giving birth to high performing professionals.

In its revival, ESOL bore the theme, “Responsible Information and Cultural Exchange in a Multilingual Society” in which Dr. Corazon Prejoles, keynote speaker of the opening program enunciated relevance with tips on how to evaluate news.

The first day of the celebration created a boom challenging students’ wide vocabulary to flow out upon overcoming the test of Lexicon Competition and giving way for aspiring songwriters from the organization to sing their heart out for the grandest songwriting competition in the university.

In the university, the battle of intelligence was always prevalent driving EF officers to conduct a quiz bowl on its second day tied also with beauty as Mr. and Ms. EF dazzled the stage with their culturally diversed portrayal of countries such as Korea, Spain, New Zealand, Singapore and the Philippines.

These countries were also the corresponding theme for the booths that were well-crafted by the students. The booths rendered substantial inputs on the viewers pertaining to how language works in each country featured.

Upon the success of the celebration, Dr. Jeson Bustamante, adviser of EF Organization, together with his fellow faculty members under ESOL, did not fail to seek opportunity to express sincere gratitude to those who helped reviving the organization.

“The department is very supportive, the faculty of the Department of Languages and Literature and also the College of Teacher Education together with all the very hardworking officers,” he said.

Amidst a rainy end of the celebration, students jam-packed and wore 90’s inspired outfits to extend the party ’til the sun slept and the moon woke. With heavy bass and beats, the scenic Samuel MacClintock Hall was clothed with new experiences and memories for the English majors to share on the comeback of ESOL Month.

Everyone made sure that reviving the organization would mark a sentimental moment that could be remembered in the next generation to come.

Winners of the contests are as follows:

Lexicon Contest
1st- BSEd English 2A
2nd- BSEd English 1A
3rd- BSEd English 1C
4th- BA Literature 1A
5th- BSEd English 2B

Quiz Bowl
1st-BSEd English 2C
2nd- BA Language 2
3rd- BA Literature 2

Song Writing
1st place – Hangyo
Composer: Brigie Gerzon
Interpreter: Brigie Gerzon

2nd place – Usa Ka Libong Higayon
Composer: Jessa Briones
Interpreter: Precious Rose Seares

3rd place – Siya Ra Ang Makita
Composer: Recka Olasimon
Interpreter: Mark Kenley Oray

Booths
1st- New Zealand
2nd- Spain
3rd-Singapore
4th- Philippines
5th- Korea

Mr. & Ms. EF 2020

Minor Awards

Best in Costume
Female: Singapore
Male: New Zealand

Best in Talent: New Zealand

Best in Casual Wear
Female: Singapore
Male: New Zealand

Major Awards

Ms. & Mr. EF: Danielle Camocamo (Singapore) BSEd English II and Ryle Romanillos (New Zealand) BSEd English I

1st runner-up: Cloie Vidal (PH) BSEd English II and Kristian Jay Montejo (Philippines) BA Language I

2nd runner-up Queenie Castro (New Zealand) BA Literature II and Francis Miguel Makiling (Spain) BA Literature I

3rd runner-up: Johanna Agrabio (Spain) BA Literature I and Armando Dela Cruz (Korea) BA Language II

4th runner-up: Vanissa Ybone Generalao (Korea) BSEd English II

Words by Jhonazel Kiskis and Mikaela Jane Dagani
Photos by Lou Paghasian and James Walson Pacaldo

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CNU gains deeper understanding on data privacy

Cebu Normal University (CNU) educators acquired knowledge on data privacy through an in-service training that was attended by all faculty members in the University.

The training on Data Privacy in Higher Education Institutions was held last January 7 and 8 at the Tandang Sora Hall.

The first day was attended by teachers from the College of Teacher Education (CTE), College of Nursing (CN), and CNU Balamban campus, while the second day was attended by educators from the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) and CNU Medellin campus.  

It was conducted by the office of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs (VPAA).

VPAA Dr. Daisy Palompon said that the gathering aims to add more inputs on data privacy to educators who are exposed to different information sharing and who come in contact with sensitive information that are shared in different social media platforms.

Palompon also said that the in-service training would also serve as a springboard for CNU faculty members to implement the data privacy operations or systems in the University.

Atty. Rey Cris Panugaling, Attorney IV and Head of the Office of Strategy Management of Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC), and Human Resource Director and Data Protection Officer of University of Cebu Medical Center (UCMed), Inc., graced the event as a guest lecturer to impart knowledge and awareness on the Data Privacy Act (DPA) of 2012 to the faculty members of his alma mater.

He gave a background briefer and overview of DPA, and discussed the rights of data subjects, general obligations, the five pillars of data privacy accountability and compliance, and data privacy threats and best practices.

The same seminar on DPA was also given to CNU non-teaching staff on February 7, 2020 which was organized by the Office of Quality Assurance in coordination with the Office of the Chief Administrative Office and Data Privacy Office. (JDF)

Updated as of February 10, 2020

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CNU goes international for YMAC 2019

The University, which has been known for being a powerhouse of talents, has been all over the Philippines for academic and extra-curricular activities alike. But this time, it has exceeded expectations and broken barriers – it brought the prestige on a worldwide scale.

The Youth Models Asian Conference (YMAC) is a tertiary conference that emulates an ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Summit which is participated by China and four ASEAN countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and the Philippines – with Singapore Polytechnic as this year’s host from September 30 to October 2.

Over the three days, the participants were expected to take on the role of ASEAN delegates to discuss economic, security, social, and cultural issues that affect their respective countries and the world as a whole.

Phoebe Godinez, a second year BA Communication major in Film Media student from Cebu Normal University (CNU), was one of the representatives of the Philippines and she said to have looked forward to the event as early as her coronation for Miss Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (PASUC) in 2018.

“It was already announced that the winners of Mr. and Ms. PASUC 2018 would get a chance to participate in YMAC prior to the national competition and I was definitely excited for all the opportunities given to me especially the conference since it would be my first time out of the country”, she explained.

During her experience, she recalled that her team, Captain Planet and His Crew, was assigned to expound more on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12 which was Responsible Consumption and Production.

SDGs are 17 global goals designed to answer pressing problems and create a sustainable future for the world.

Godinez said that their SDG mainly focuses on resource and energy efficiency, to which they pitched the solution of creating a Plastic for Food centers where people can come exchange their plastic wastes for food and their group planned to turn over their collected plastics to waste management facilities and recycling plants.

 She said she didn’t mind being the only Filipino in her group who were full of Singaporeans and Indonesians.

“I love seeing my new international friends and learning about their cultures knowing that I am also growing as a person”, Godinez said.

Towards the end of the conference, she said that all the participants, including her group, presented their projects in an exhibit and they had a mock ASEAN Summit then a closing ceremony.

“The most important thing that I learned from the conference is cultural intelligence – that learning and adapting to differences in tradition and culture enrich communication and action towards world problems”, Godinez stated as her overall impression of the event.

YMAC was a huge step for the university to get out and be in the international spotlight and this opens up another gateway of opportunities for students which can hone their capabilities and raise their awareness on various issues facing the world today and what are the possible sustainable solutions for these. (Rhina Tabada, BA Communication Film Media 2)

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Excellence is normal in CNU

Graduates of the three colleges of Cebu Normal University secured highest places in their respective board exams this year.

CNU’s three colleges – College of Arts and Sciences (CAS), College of Teacher Education (CTE), and College of Nursing (CN) – have constantly proven their ability to hone undergraduate students well as they continue to yield top achievers in various licensure examinations for a good number of years now.

CAS groomed Shelter Anne Hernando (4th placer) and Jamaika Lyze Lumacang (9th Placer) during the October 2019 Psychometrician Licensure Examination. CTE tutored Rebekah Louise Rosito (5th Placer) during the September 2019 Licensure Exam for Teachers (LET) on the Elementary level. Finally, CN prepared Jasmin Claire Tamang (4th Placer) and Jorel Franco Antone Tangpuz (5th Placer) during the recent November 2019 Nursing Licensure Exam (NLE).

“I am very, very happy that the tradition of excellence continues,” CNU President Filomena Dayagbil said.

“The name of CNU is actually tantamount to quality and excellence and we have proven it through the years through the efforts of our faculty, our students, administrators, and all the stakeholders,” she said.

CAS Dean Dr. Milagros Greif said that the CAS faculty and department chairs have looked into strategies to increase the percentage of board exam passers. An increase of 14.7 percent was recorded this year as compared to 2018’s passing percentage. She also said that they have tapped CNU Faculty Association Incorporated (FAI) to conduct reviews for graduating students which is cheaper than other review centers. Lectures have also been done where topnotchers from previous board exams are invited as speakers to share their experiences and insights. CNU CAS has produced five topnotchers in the Psychometrician Licensure Exam since it started in 2014.

CTE Dean Dr. Ethel Abao said that students can top the board exam since the culture of excellence has been established in CNU for a long time. She said that the practice of tests used in board exams help students to be accustomed to it. CTE educators from the college department and Integrated Laboratory School (ILS) also take turns in giving free review enhancement programs to students through their special project called Concerted Action to Raise Excellence (CARE). She admits that CARE still needs to be strengthened to achieve the 100 percent passing target. The three CNU campuses – Main, Balamban, and Medellin – should also work together in order to attain a higher percentage of LET passers, she said. CTE has produced 31 topnotchers in the last 10 years.

CN, on the other hand, has consistently been part of the top passers of NLE in the past 10 years and has been considered as one of the top-performing schools in the Philippines with a 100 percent passing rate. 48 CNU CN students have made it to the top 10 list in the last 10 years.

CN Dean Dr. Noemi Yntig said that the support of students’ family is a big factor to success along with the teachers’ constant follow-up on the students’ school performance. She said that success is achieved through collaboration. She also accredits the screening and elimination process during enrollment that selects the best students.

“Excellence is always a way of life for all of us here and it is manifested by our outcomes,” Dayagbil said. (JDF)

 

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CAS Dean wins national biotechnology award

Dr. Milagros Greif, College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Dean was awarded as one of the outstanding Filipinos in the field of biotechnology.

She was recognized together with nine other awardees during the 4th Filipino Faces of Biotechnology Awards Night on November 26, 2019 in Quezon City. It was given by the Department of Agriculture-Biotechnology Program Office (DA-BPO).

Greif said that she is very happy to receive such a prestigious award on the national level. She said she is thankful to Dr. Daisy Palompon, Vice President for Academic Affairs who nominated her and for Dr. Filipina Sotto, her mentor, and Dr. Laurence Garcia, Center for Research and Development Director who assisted her with the requirements. She is the only Cebuana to receive the award this year.

 

Greif has been awarded specifically as an outstanding researcher on urban pest control through biotechnology.

Greif said that she has studied mosquitoes for more than 15 years. She finished her masters in Biology specializing the study of insects. She also had her doctorate studies in Germany as a scholar in the field of Biology with a dissertation on biochemical, molecular, and microscopic studies in mosquitoes. After which, she worked in biological control, the use of certain bacteria to kill mosquitoes without the use of chemicals that disrupt biodiversity. She then replicated here in the Philippines what she learned in Germany, and modified it to adapt in tropical weather conditions.

She said that the biological pest control was applied initially in Balamban as part of her extension project.

“We tested it already but we are not yet on the process of selling,” Greif said.  

“I think mosquitoes are very interesting insects because they’re very small but the negative impact that they will bring to humankind is very huge,” Greif said narrating how her interest started after choosing it as a thesis topic when she took her master’s degree.

She said that a child dies of malaria every second and stressed that this is the reason why mosquitoes should be studied.

“It’s killing the lives of the people,” she said.

“Children are dying because of dengue and I really have to look into it, to study deeper and then find ways on how we can contribute in addressing this problem because it involves lives,” Greif said.

The Filipino Faces of Biotechnology Award was conducted by DA-BPO in time for the National Biotechnology Week held annually in the last week of November. It is given to Filipino individuals who have contributed to the advancement of biotechnology in the Philippines. (JDF)

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CNU transpires 1st congress in dengue awareness

To raise awareness of dengue intervention, Cebu Normal University (CNU) with the participation of Cebu City Government and City Health Office launched its first assembly on dengue awareness and mosquito control held at Teaching Arts Centrum Auditorium last Friday, with the theme, “Dengue Awareness and Mosquito Control: Enabling Innovations for Sustainable Development”.

The event started with a welcoming remark by University President Dr. Filomena T. Dayagbil, stating that the university is honored to be chosen as a host of the said congress.

“As a state university funded by the government, it is our responsiblity to make sure to partner with the agencies in the government and make the government’s projects and activities successful as they cascade down to our stake holders and collegues,” Dayagbil explained.

Hon. Michael Rama, the Vice Mayor of Cebu City and Chairman Committee on Health Hospital Services and Sanitation, served as the keynote speaker, saying that each individual in the government, health sector, and barangay, needs to be vigilant in maintaining cleanliness and responsibility to eradicate the causes of dengue in the community that they belong.

He added emphhasis on enhancing the 4S (search and destroy, see early consultation, self protection measures, and say yes to fogging only during outbreaks) strategy measures to guide the people on what they should do in protecting themselves against the virus.

Plenary speakers who tackled related topics were Dr. Milagros Grief, Dean of College of Arts and Sciences, who shared about the life cycle of mosquito and about mosquito control; Dr. Ronald Jarvik Buscato, Regional Program Manager of National Aedes-Born Viral Diseases Prevention and Control Program, who discussed about current dengue situation in the Philippines; and Dr. Daisy Villa, Cebu City Health officer, who added insights about Cebu City’s current dengue situation.

The event was attended by faculty members of CNU, Barangay Health Workers, and Barangay Representatives from the different barangays around the city.

Meanwhile, Vilma Cuyos, a barangay health worker in Barangay Punta Princesa, gave tips on how to regulate the mosquitoes.

“Ang pagpanglimpyo sa panimalay, ang pag-agni sa mga tupad nimo nga balay nga manglimpyo, dili lang sa kana kon dili sa sulod sad sa panimalay ug i-suggest sa barangay ang ‘4 o’clock Habit’ nga manglimpyo gyod matag alas-kwatro sa hapon kay sa dihang mga orasa kay mangguwa ang mga lamok nga magdalag dengue,” Cuyos said.

An open forum followed, serving as the congress’ end; a lunch buffet accommodated the guests, while being serenaded by CNU Chorale.

Words and Photos by Leonel Quillo

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